The Union Titans are celebrating their likely league championship after topping the defending state champion Papermakers for the second consecutive night, and Friday’s win gave Union the series edge over Camas this regular season

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

They got to dribble out the clock for the last 20 seconds or so, just waiting for that final horn to sound to unofficially become league champions.

The clock hit zero.

The horn.

Then chaos.

The Titans rushed the court. Their fans joined them. And after a quick handshake with their opponents, it was back to the party.

The Union Titans did not officially clinch the Class 4A Greater St. Helens League girls basketball title on Friday night, but they had every reason to celebrate like they did just that. There are two games left in the regular season, and they hold the tiebreakers against any and all foes.

The Titans put themselves in this position in style, beating the defending state champions two times in as many nights. 

Camas, playing shorthanded on Thursday night at Union High School, lost its first game to a Southwest Washington opponent since the spring of 2021. 

On Friday, the Papermakers had their regular starters back in the lineup. And yet Union maintained its momentum from 24 hours earlier and cruised to a 76-54 victory at Camas High School.

“I feel like everybody had a lot of doubts coming into this, people on the outside did, because their best players were back,” Union junior Brooklynn Haywood said. “But we still pulled through and played with a lot of heart.”

“No matter who is on the floor, we’re always ready,” said sophomore Myla Larry, who was the catalyst for so much of Union’s victory Friday with her play on defense and offense. “We did great just working together.”

Haywood had 12 of her 23 points in the decisive third quarter, as Union extended a six-point halftime lead to 17. She had two of her patented step-back, long-range 3-pointers in the period.

Larry had 13 of her 17 points in the second half. She got a steal and a score to open the fourth quarter to push the Union lead to 19 points. She buried a 3-pointer later in the quarter, as well.

“It feels so great to win,” Larry said. “We’ve been working really hard.”

That is the story of this year’s Union squad. The Titans felt they made this league title happen. Nothing was given to them. In the first matchup with Camas, the Titans trailed by double digits, then roared back in the second half, only to lose by two points.

Then Thursday’s matchup was all Union, with Camas seniors Sophie Buzzard and Keirra Thompson sitting out with injuries.

Well, Buzzard and Thompson returned to the lineup Friday. Maybe not 100 percent healthy but healthy enough to play.

It did not matter to the Titans.

“That didn’t change how we were going to play. Them playing or them not playing didn’t change how we were going to play,” Haywood said. “We were going to play our hearts out.”

Union coach Gary Mills said he had no idea who was going to be in the lineup for the Papermakers. He simply was not worried.

“We didn’t care. We didn’t care. I had a smile on my face all day because I thought we were going to win,” Mills said.

Then he enjoyed watching his team celebrate.

“Such a cool thing. I don’t think I’ve seen a group of our girls in our program bounce up and down at midcourt after some big game in a little bit,” Mills said. “We’ve had 17 wins, 19 wins, but we haven’t been able to get a big one. It just means a lot to get one on their court.”

Camas coach Scott Thompson gave credit to the Titans.

“They’re a good basketball team. They really deserve it,” the coach said. “They’ve got a really complete team with a lot of good players. They’re hard to figure out.”

The first quarter featured back-and-forth basketball, with Union taking an 18-15 advantage. The Titans built the lead to 14 in the second quarter, but Camas responded to make it a six-point game at the half.

Union’s Janessa Chatman had nine of her 13 points in the first half. Jalise Chatman had nine of her 12 in the first half as Union spread the scoring around to take the lead.

Buzzard finished with 21 points to lead Camas. Lauren Hood scored 13, and Keirra Thompson added 12.

“You can’t have everything in life,” Scott Thompson said. “Sometimes you don’t win. That’s just how it is.”

The regular season in the GSHL wraps up next week, and both of these teams will be going to the bi-district tournament in hopes of earning a trip to the state tournament. 

Camas has placed at state the past three seasons, with a state championship in 2024. The 2025 Papermakers aren’t done yet.

“You don’t have to say much to this team,” Scott Thompson said. “It’s a pretty simple formula. Let this loss turn into growth. If we do that, we’re going to be better off for it.”

Union looks to be heading into the bi-district as the 4A GSHL champion.

“I know we worked hard for this,” Haywood said. “We earned it.”